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Tuesday, October 5, 2010

The HURT 100 Mile Endurance Run takes place in Hawaii on the island of Oahu. It is know for being one of, if not the toughest 100 Miler out there. It's a 20 mile-loop-type-course through the rain forest that ascends and descends about 29,000' (each way). The top of the mountain, where the trail intersects is about 1450' and in one lap you reach the summit 3 times. The race is 5 laps around the course. Here's the trail map:

PROFILING HURT attempts to tell a story about 2 friends who set out to complete the HURT 100. One of the runner's is a veteran ultramarathoner and also the founder of Ultrasignup.com, Mark Gilligan. The other is Scott Guild who is new to Ultramarathoning. The movie does an excellent job of capturing the terrain of the course and what some of the runner's and people around the race are experiencing. The documentary has an up close and personal feel but almost to a fault. It lacks in capturing the solitude that is so familiar to every runner. I'm sure it would require a larger budget and significantly more effort by the filmmaker but throughout the documentary I was hoping for more candid scenes of runner's, race director's, volunteer's, supporters, and aid stations. However, my hat goes off to PROFILING HURT for capturing what it did of the race and of Mark and Scott's experience. I'm not sure how one would really go about documenting anything over the course of 100 miles!

Most of the Extra Features on the DVD are great and generously complimented the film. "The Course" section was excellent and really shows runners in the trenches working through elements. I also really enjoyed the John Solomon (race director) interview.

Profiling HURT would appeal to almost any runner. It is a MUST WATCH for runner's who are stepping up to the challenge of the HURT 100 or those just considering getting into long distance running (no matter your definition of "long distance"). It yields a great view into what training can be like and where it can take you.

GO HERE TO GET YOUR COPY OF PROFILING HURT!
Be sure to check out the Hawaiin Ultra Running Team's website. John Solomon and the team are responsible for putting together the HURT 100. Also, click HERE for an excellent, in depth, re-cap of the race.